In Re STANDARD JURY INSTRUCTIONS IN CRIMINAL CASES-REPORT NO. 2014-08
176 So. 3d 938
| Fla. | 2015Background
- The Supreme Court of Florida (per curiam) considered proposed amendments to multiple Standard Jury Instructions in Criminal Cases submitted by the Court’s Committee on Standard Jury Instructions in Criminal Cases.
- The Court has constitutional jurisdiction to authorize jury instructions. The Committee published proposals in The Florida Bar News and received four comments.
- The Court authorized the proposed amendments (with one modification) for publication and use and noted the authorization does not endorse correctness and does not preclude challenges or requests for alternatives.
- Key substantive changes include: (1) removal of a note in instruction 7.9 regarding death of an unborn child and clarification that death of an unborn child applies to both vessel and vehicular homicide consistent with §775.021(5); (2) revised lottery instructions to cite Little River Theatre Corp. and to simplify/define lottery elements and key terms (bet, thing ventured, prize by lot or chance); (3) relocation of “use of coercion” into element two of the human trafficking instruction; (4) addition of a new instruction (20.21) covering Fraudulent Use of Personal Identification Information for several protected classes and elimination of instruction 23.8 (Selling a Minor into Prostitution by certain caretakers).
- The amended instructions (with underscored new language and struck-through deletions in the appendix) become effective when the opinion is final; the Court cautioned that Committee comments reflect only the Committee’s views.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether death of an unborn child applies to Vessel Homicide as well as Vehicular Homicide | Committee: Amend 7.9 to include unborn child death for both offenses consistent with §775.021(5) | (No opposing party identified; commenters raised issues generally) | Court deleted the contrary note in 7.9 and confirmed unborn-child death applies to both vessel and vehicular homicide. |
| How to define and instruct juries on "lottery" offenses | Committee: Simplify and standardize lottery definition to the three Little River elements and add definitions for "bet," "thing ventured," and "prize by lot or chance"; add Little River citation | Some commenters likely questioned wording or scope (no detailed opposing arguments in opinion) | Court approved the revised lottery instructions and added the Little River Theatre Corp. citation. |
| Placement of "use of coercion" in Human Trafficking instruction | Committee: Move "use of coercion" from definitional section into element two where it is used to establish the offense | (No detailed opposition recorded) | Court approved moving "use of coercion" into element two of instruction 29.24. |
| Whether to add/withdraw specific instructions (new 20.21; removal of 23.8) | Committee: Add instruction 20.21 for fraudulent use of personal ID of several protected groups; remove instruction 23.8 (selling minor into prostitution by parent/guardian/control) | (Comments received but not detailed in opinion) | Court authorized new instruction 20.21 and removed instruction 23.8 as proposed. |
Key Cases Cited
- Little River Theatre Corp. v. State, 185 So. 855 (Fla. 1939) (establishes the three-element definition of a lottery: consideration, prize, and award by chance)
- Lakey v. State, 113 So. 3d 90 (Fla. 5th DCA 2013) (construing "sexual activity" definitions and related instruction language)
- State v. Werner, 609 So. 2d 585 (Fla. 1992) (interpretation of "in the presence of" in sexual-offense instruction context)
- Gian-Grasso v. State, 899 So. 2d 392 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005) (comment on convictions when jury returns lesser included offenses)